Vintage Pincushion

Charming vintage pincushion found on Pinterest, from Ruby Lane Vintage.

I've been collecting pincushion Pins here.

Pincushion from Kathleen

My quilt guild Hearthside Quilters had a handmade pincushion exchange in February. This is the beauty I received from my friend and fellow guild member Kathleen Connors. She made it from wool. And what a nice embroidery job she did. It looks great in my quilt room (I love black). Thank you, Kathleen! 

Interesting Pincushions

Isn't this an interesting mini cart vintage pincushion? It's from RubyLane.com, but must have been sold since it's not shown there anymore.

Embroidered pincushion by Susan O'Connor of Australia featured on Needle and Thread.

Vintage Victorian Pincushion sold on eBay.

I'm not making pincushions any more, but I still like looking for interesting ones online.

Win This Pincushion!

Simply leave a Comment and you'll be entered in a random drawing to win this new handmade pincushion. Pinsies included. Winner will be announced next Friday, Jan. 10. Entries welcomed from anywhere on earth.

Take a look at my quilt patterns and tell me in your Comment which one (or which type) appeals to you. I'm looking for direction for pattern topics in the new year. Easy or challenging, unique or classic, upcycling/scrap? Any thoughts, or just say "Hi!"

OOAK Vintage Pincushion

Definitely One-of-a-Kind! This Connecticut antique market find has been transformed (by me) into a pincushion. (From what? I don't know, maybe a vase?) 

When my 26-yo son and I saw this at the Elephant's Trunk in New Milford, he said "Sick!" and I said "Perfect!" I like this fancy little Renaissance guy. The piece is unglazed bisque, and the cushion is pink silk dupioni. Pinsies included. See this pincushion.

Here's another favorite find turned into a pincushion: the Hand & Purse. (Sold.)

See more pincushions: Sea Urchins, Buns, Wool, and Collector. 

One-of-a-Kind Pincushion!

I found this hilarious "Cherubs & Carriage" figurine at an antiques market in New Milford, Connecticut, and I knew I needed to make it into a pincushion! Wouldn't this make the funniest gift for your quilting buddy? Watch out though, she might "re-gift" it to you next year! Good laughs each time. 

The silk cushion has an appropriately upholstered look, don't you think? I bet my sisters read this post and thank their lucky stars that they're not getting this for Christmas. Heehee. Watch out, I may have something else up my sleeve!

This pincushion measures 8" long, 5" high, and 4" side-to-side. More info here. 

Giveaway Winners! Sea Urchin Pincushion and Pinsies

The winner of the sea urchin pincushion is...

QUILT SWISSY!

The winners of the pinsies are:

1. Rebecca Halley

2. Swedish Scrapper

3. Mary Mahoo

4. Michelle

5. Gypsy Quilter

6. Just Call Me Elle

7. White Lily

8. Chiska

9. Kathy Gordon

10. Margie

Please send me your mailing address so I can get your pinsies on their way to you.

Happy Thanksgiving!!

P.S. To see a whole boatload of sea urchin pincushions, click here.

Sea Urchin Pincushion GIVEAWAY!

Have you visited the Sea Urchin Pincushion page yet? You could win one of these colorful decorations for your quilt studio (any color you want), or a package of nine pinsies. There will be one sea urchin and 10 packages of pinsies given away. A total of 11 prizes.

Here's what you do. Post one of these photos someplace on the Internet, or spread the word about sea urchin pincushions in some way. Include this link. Then leave a comment on this post. The winners will be chosen (at random) next Wednesday Nov. 21, Thanksgiving Eve. 

The beaded pins are called pinsies. They make nice little pincushion decorations for you, or favors for your quilting buddies. Aren't they pretty in the sun? 

I make these while watching movies with my DH. Want to see the tutorial? 

Making them is so much fun, it's hard to stop. (Duh!) 

Thanks for helping me spread the word. :)

Sharon's Pinsies & Pincushions

Sharon Woerz of Kalama Quilts in Washington State just made these pinsies and pincushions as gifts for her friends in Michigan. Lucky friends! She's keeping one for herself, I think it's the one below. The beads are so pretty in the light. Nice job, Sharon. 

Sea Urchin Pincushion!

This is my new Sea Urchin! It's a silk pincushion on a round glass dish, topped with 60 pinsies! I love the busyness of the whole thing, like a scrap quilt. This looks awesome in my quilt studio. And when you're on the phone, you can take them out and rearrange them. See this in my Etsy store.

Gunpowder Pincushion!

Karin Peirce of Maine found this image (above) of a vintage gunpowder pincushion, and was inspired to make the one below. Nice job! She didn't say if she filled hers with with gunpowder. And like Karin says, you could always throw it into the fireplace if necessary!

I did a quick Google search for a connection between gunpowder and pincushions and didn't find anything.

Some vintage pincushions were filled with crushed walnut shells, straw, sand, rice, human hair or horsehair. Most of the vintage pinucshion ads on eBay don't say what's inside. 

Karin also sent this photo of two pincushions from Russia. Thanks, Karin!

Do you remember this pincushion named "Endurance?" It originated a long time ago in Japan and was recently rescued in Connecticut and given a new silk cushion and two pretty pinsies. It has just been purchased by a woman in Victoria, Australia! What an exciting life this little guy is having! If only it could talk!

I've had a computer virus which has kept me off the Internet for a few days, but I'm back now.

Purse in Hand

 

I found this "Purse in Hand" at an antique market here in Connecticut, and it's really growing on me. I added the silk cushion and it's now listed in my Etsy store. The possibility of finding things like this is what drives me to search the antique markets. Okay, flea markets. :) I used to really dislike stuff like this; what's happening to me? First selvages, now this. What's next?

Notice the two pretty pinsies (beaded pins) in this cushion. They're made with pearls and glass beads.

Now That's Better! Pincushion Gravy Boat

If you were a little shocked yesterday with the Endurance pincushion, you might like this one better. I love the lime green silk dupioni cushion. The gravy boat is "old world," but the color is up-to-date. Nice combination of elegance and fun. I'd rather enjoy this every day in my quilt room than keep it in the china cabinet. See it here on Etsy.

I think the two pinsies with pearls and glass beads add a nice touch too.

The Pincushion Named Endurance

I recently bought a little silverplate cream pitcher at the Elephant's Trunk Flea Market. The seller said with a chuckle, "You can have the matching sugar bowl for free." When I showed it to my sister Eileen, she said, "Don't throw it away! Make it a pincushion; it's interesting; it has history!" So here it is.

This bowl was made in Japan, probably mid 1900's. It may have been a wedding gift, and probably spent years looking pretty in a china cabinet. But it has seen hard times, that's for sure. It was pulled from the wreckage for some reason, and because of Eileen, is now starting a new chapter as a pinsuchion, complete with a peach-colored silk cushion and two fancy pinsies. That's Endurance!

It will be listed soon with the other 100+ pincushions on Etsy in case you want to see more photos.

Fenton Glass Shoes!

And here they are after the removal of the bandages. I'll make new pinsies for these cushions, although the blue one looks like a keeper. I would never have given these shoes a second look at the flea market if I wasn't keeping a keen eye out for pincushion containers but I like them. The man I bought them from said he has a thousand more at home. Uh, okay. Can you imagine? Do you think he was trying to get a date? Haha!

Thank you to Jean and Sandy for the info that these were made by

Fenton Glass in Williamstown, West Virginia. Fenton is no longer in business.

Bandaged Glass Shoes

You've probably guessed these are pincushions under construction, but are you wondering about the "bandages?" These vintage shoes are a recent flea market find. I like the cushions to be nice and full, but when I tried to glue the cushion into the shoe, it kept popping out. Rather than remove some of the polyfill, it seemed better to tape it in there until the glue dried. But of course you don't want to tape silk. It might leave a mark. So, the bandage!

Yes, necessity is the mother of invention. This isn't quite as good as sliced bread, but I'm smiling anyway. These shoes are so ugly they're cute! (Don't worry; the green silk is actually a nice celery. The color on my monitor is pretty bad.) I'll show you when they're finished.

Girl & Dog to Become New Pincushion

I've been on the lookout for interesting items to make into pincushions. This one came from the Elephant's Trunk Flea Market in New Milford, CT. The inscription on the bottom of this piece seems to say "Rose," and "Germany." It doesn't feel smooth like glass; it's more flat-finished and a little grainy. Maybe it's ceramic. It appears to be old. I'll show you when this becomes a pincushion.

Any suggestions for what color silk I should use for the pincushion? Pink? Wheat?

Pincushion from Linda, the Quilting Violinist

Linda from Florida, the Quilting Violinist, won the World Quilt (see sidebar post). She sent me a sweet thank you package that included this beautiful pincushion. This is the one that I use, although for this photo, I have it "staged" with decorative pins. Didn't she do a great job making this? Linda used CD's for the base. The level of squishiness is just right, medium-firm. She probably put some old violin strings in there. :) Linda attached the selvages with a zig-zag stitch. Here's a photo of the back.

There's something special about using a pincushion that a friend makes for you. Similar to having a birthday cake made by a friend rather than making your own. Haha. Click here to see more of Linda's selvage creations. Thanks, Linda!